Clinical Research Directory

Effects of Brief Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback on Physiological and Emotional Responses

This completed randomized laboratory study investigated the immediate effects of a single 10-minute session of heart rate variability biofeedback (HRV-B) on cardiac activity, forehead physiological signals, and emotional responses in adults. Heart rate variability reflects changes in the time intervals between heartbeats. HRV biofeedback provides real-time information about heart rhythm patterns and allows individuals to adjust their breathing in response to visual feedback. Thirty-two adult participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. Sixteen participants completed HRV biofeedback training using the emWave Pro Plus system, while 16 participants watched educational videos about biofeedback and breathing. Heart rate variability was measured before, during, and after the intervention. Forehead physiological signals were recorded using hemoencephalography (HEG) before, during, and after the session. Positive and negative affect were assessed using questionnaires completed before and after the intervention. The purpose was to compare immediate physiological and emotional responses between participants receiving active HRV biofeedback and those receiving psychoeducational information without real-time physiological feedback. The original ethics-approved research proposal also included a planned non-invasive bioimpedance assessment of systemic inflammation. This component was not implemented, and no inflammation-related measurements were collected.